Garment hanger attachment



Sept. 17, 1968 s. E. LANE 3,401,853

GARMENT HANGER ATTACHMENT Filed March 20, 1967 INVENTOR.

l7 STUART E. LANE ATTOR United States Patent 3,401,853 GARMENT HANGERATTACHMENT Stuart E. Lane, 750 Chipper Laue, Wichita, Kans. 67212 FiledMar. 20, 1967, Ser. No. 624,523 3 Claims. (Cl. 223-87) ABSTRACT OF THEDISCLOSURE A wire garment hanger attachment comprising a plasticsheet-like body having downwardly divergent arms and an interconnectingcrossbar with wire garment engageable structure on one side of the armsand crossbar to releasably retain the attachment to the wire garmenthanger.

Various types of garment hanger structures are known to the prior artconnectible to conventional bent Wire hanger which have downwardlydiverging garment supporting arms, a horizontal support memberintegrally connecting the lower portion of the support arms, and anintegral hook connected by a twisted shank to an apex formed by theupper converging ends of the support arm. The hook is usable as a handlefor conveying the wire hanger or is connectible to a structure forsupporting the same. It is desirable in the prior art devices to providemeans for shielding and protecting the garments from the wire hanger sothat the same will not be soiled by rust or dirt thereon and, inaddition, a more adequate supporting surface is desired whereby creasesare not formed in the garments due to the relatively thin wire supportportion. Additionally, it has been found in the general practice ofreturning garments such as in the cleaning and tailoring business, thatthe garments readily slip from the wire garment hanger and, therefore,become soiled and mussed. In order to overcome such garment slippage,several different methods have been devised, such as providing completecoverage to the supporting surfaces of the wire garment hanger so as toincrease the area of frictional contact or to using a method of securingthe garment on the hanger by pins or clips. These latter methods mayserve to retain a garment on the wire hanger but they are entirelyunsatisfactory because they result in pin holes or, if using a clipmember, results in marks being left on the subject garment. It is seen,therefore, that the prior art devices fail in providing a means forsupporting hanging garments that is readily attachable to a conventionalwire garment hanger so as to provide enlarged areas for supporting agarment thereon such as a coat, and, additionally, provide means forconnecting a pair of trousers or the like thereto against slippage whilemaintaining the same in a neat and crease-free status.

In accordance with the present invention, a new and novel garment hangerattachment is provided readily connectible to a conventional wiregarment hanger having downwardly diverging garment supporting armsinterconnected at the lower ends thereof with a horizontal support barmember and formed with an integral shank and hook member connected to anapex formed by the upwardly converging arms. The garment hangerattachment is constructed of a sheet material having a main body withdownwardly diverging arm sections interconnected at the lowermostportions thereof by a transversely extended strut or cross member. Thearm sections are provided with laterally extended and downwardlyinclined vertical support tabs. The upper adjacent ends of the armsections are interconnected by a head section provided with a laterallyextended connector projection or lock stud which is engageable with theconnecting portion of the shank and apex of the supporting arms of thewire gar- 3,401,853 Patented Sept. 17, 1968 "ice ment hanger as willbecome obvious. The strut or cross member is provided with a laterallyextended upper head portion of substantially cylindrical shape intransverse cross section having a lower or bottom portion engageablewith the support bar of the wire garment hanger. In the assembly of thegarment hanger attachment with the conventional wire garment hanger, thevertical support tabs are placed above opposed portions of the garmentsupporting arms and the lock stud is mounted between the apex formed bythe garment supporting arms whereby the downwardly inclined support tabsact to prevent lateral movement of the wire garment hanger therefromplus vertical support and the lock stud presents horizontal stabilityand prevents downward movement of the wire hanger relative thereto.Therefore, the wire garment hanger is maintained against one side of theupright garment support attachment and the head portion of the crossmember is engageable with the horizontal support bar of the wire garmenthanger. It is seen that the garment hanger attachment is adapted tosupport a coat or the like upon the upper surface thereof and a pair oftrousers is readily placed about the cross member and connected theretoin a clamped relationship between the same and the support bar of thewire garment hanger. The vertical support tabs also act to bias the wiregarment hanger inwardly into contact with the main body to clamp thetrousers between the head portion and the adjacent vertical surface ofthe cross member.

Accordingly, it is an object of this invention to provide a new andnovel garment hanger attachment overcoming the above-mentioneddisadvantages of the prior art devices.

Another object of this invention is to provide a garment hangerattachment operable to support a coat and/or trousers and preventcreases and wrinkles from being formed therein While positively clampingthe trousers to prevent the same from slipping therefrom.

A still further object of this invention is to provide a garment hangerattachment that is readily connectible to a conventional wire garmenthanger with a minimum amount of effort while providing sufficientvertical and lateral support thereto.

One other object of this invention is to provide a garment hangerattachment apparatus that is economical to manufacture, simple to use,and effective in operation.

Various other objects, advantages and features of the invention willbecome apparent to those skilled in the art from the followingdiscussion, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, inwhich:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the garment hanger attachment of thisinvention as connected to a conventional Wire garment hanger illustratedwith a fragmentary view of a pair of trousers mounted thereon;

FIG. 2 is a front elevational view of the garment hanger attachment ofthis invention as connected to the conventional wire garment hanger;

FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken along line 33 in FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional view taken along lines 44 inFIG. 2; and

FIG. 5 is an enlarged sectional view taken along line 55 in FIG. 2.

The following is a discussion and description of preferred specificembodiments of the new garment hanger attachment of this invention, suchbeing made with reference to the drawings, whereupon the same referencenumerals are used to indicate the same or similar parts and/orstructure. It is to be understood that such discussion and descriptionis not to unduly limit the scope of the invention.

Referring to the drawings in detail and in particular to FIG. 1, thegarment hanger attachment of this invention, indicated generally at 12,is illustrated as connected to a conventional wire garment hanger 14 andhaving a pair of trousers 15 supported thereon. More specifically, thewire garment hanger 14 is of a wellknown type having downwardlydiverging garment supporting arms 17; a horizontal support bar member 18integrally connecting the lower ends of the arms 17; and an integralhook member 21 connected by a shank 23 to the apex formed by theconverging upper ends of the garment supporting arms 17. It is obviousthat the wire garment hanger 14 is made of a bent wire constructionhaving the upper hook member 21 and one converging garment supportingarm 17 interconnected by a twisting of the same as indicated by theshank 23.

The garment hanger attachment 12 is preferably constructed of a sheetmaterial having a main body 26 provided with a pair of downwardlydiverging garment hanger arm sections 27 and 29 interconnected at thelowermost ends thereof by a generally horizontally extended strut orcross member 31. The main body 26 is constructed of a shape generallysimilar to but larger than the wire garment hanger 14. The garmenthanger arm sections 27 and 29 are provided with laterally and downwardlyextended vertical support tabs 33 and 34 positioned opposite from oneanother and extended in the same direction relative to the main body 26.The upper ends of the arm sections 27 and 29 are integral with a headsection 36 having a laterally extended, cylindrically shaped connectorprojection or lock stud 37 extended in the same lateral direction as thesupport tabs 33 and 34. The strut or cross member 31 is provided with abase 38 having an upper hanger bar or head portion 40 of cylindricalshape in transverse cross section adapted to engage the support barmember 18 of the wire garment hanger 14. Additionally, it is noted thatthe upper head portion 40 is extended laterally relative to the base 38in the same direction as the lock stud 37 and the vertical support tabs33 and 34 for reasons to become obvious.

In the assembly of the garment hanger attachment 12 of this invention,the same is placed about the wire garment hanger 14 whereupon thevertical support tabs 33 and 34 are engageable with the downwardlydiverging garment supporting arms 17. Additionally the lock stud 37 isextended between the upper ends of the garment supporting arms 17 so asto be engageable with the shank 23 thereof to prevent downward movementof the wire hanger 14 relative thereto. The garment hanger attachment 12is of such a size and shape so that the head portion 40 is engageablewith the upper surface of the lower support bar member 18 of the wiregarment hanger 14 in a clamped relationship. It is seen, therefore, thatin the interconnected condition of the garment hanger attachment 12 onthe conventional wire garment hanger 14 with the support hook 21 graspedin ones hand or connected to a supporting object, the garment hangerattachment 12 is supported by contact of the vertical support tabs 33and 34 and by the adjacent, contacting relationship of the head portion40 with the support bar member 18 thereof. Also upward movement of thegarment hanger attachment apparatus 12 from the wire garment hanger 14is hindered by the contact of the lock stud 37 with the shank 23 so thatthe same is given substantial vertical stability in both directions.Additionally, the clamping relationship of the support tabs 33 and 34prevent lateral movement of the structures relative to each other.

In the use and operation of the completed assembly with the garmenthanger attachment 12 of this invention, it is seen that the upper edgesurfaces of the main body 26 are of a substantial width so as to readilysupport a garment thereon without the formation of creases there in.Additionally, the main body 26 operates to support a coat or the likethereon and prevent the contact of the same with the wire garment hanger14 which, in some instances, is very desirable as the same might besoiled or rusty. The trousers 15 are readily mountable over the crossmember 31 of the garment hanger attachment 12 whereupon the support barmember 18 of the wire garment hanger 14 is movable into engagementtherewith to clamp the trousers 15 with the lower area of the headportion 40 and the bar member 18 against the base 38. Additionally it isseen that the biasing effect of the vertical support tabs 33 and 34operates to hold the wire garment hanger 14 inwardly to clamp the samethereagainst.

It is desirable that the garment hanger attachment 12 of this inventionbe constructed substantially 1 /2 to 2 times the thickness of thediameter of the conventional wire garment hanger 14 to provide avertical support surface for a coat and also to provide a clamping meansof holding the trousers 15 without causing creases therein.Additionally, the garment hanger attachment 12 of this invention ispreferably constructed of a plastic material so as to be somewhat rigidwhile maintaining a certain degree of flexibility thereby permitting therelative movement of the lower cross member 31 relative to the supportbar member 18 of the wire garment hanger 14 so as to easily attach thetrousers 15 thereto.

It is seen that the garment hanger attachment of this invention presentsa compact, neat structure that is economical to manufacture, simple touse, and of durable construction that can be used over and over,Additionally, it is seen that the garment hanger attachment presents astructure readily usable in cleaning, tailoring, and otherestablishments where a low-cost, durable and attractive garment hangeris desired operable to maintain the garments in an original condition.

While the invention has been described in conjunction with preferredspecific embodiments thereof, it will be understood that thisdescription is intended to illustrate and not to limit the scope of theinvention, which is defined by the following claims.

I claim:

1. A garment hanger attachment adapted for use with a conventional wirehanger of generally triangular shape having a bar member, upwardlyconverging support arms connected to opposite ends of the bar member,and an upper, inverted U-shaped neck portion operable to support coatsand/or trousers, comprising:

(a) a generally rigid main body having a base cross member, upwardlyconverging side members connected to said cross member, and a headsection interconnected to upper adjacent ends of said side members,

(b) said side members each formed with a support tab laterally extendingto one side thereof engageable over the support arms to provide verticalsupport and lateral stability,

(c) said cross member having a head portion laterally extending to saidone side releasably engageable with the bar member to secure a pair oftrousers or a skirt therebetween, and

((1) said head section having a lock stud member laterally extending tosaid one side engageable with the under surface of the inverted U-shapedneck portion of the wire hanger to bias said head portion into positiveengagement with the bar member.

2. A garment hanger attachment as described in claim 1, wherein:

(a) said main body is fiat sheet material, and

(b) said head portion having a thickness substantially greater than thethickness of said sheet material thereby engageable in a clampedrelationship with the upper and one side surface of the bar member ofthe wire hanger and extended transversely thereof to hold a pair oftrousers therebetween.

3. A garment hanger attachment as described in claim 1, wherein:

(a) said support tabs extend downwardly relative to said side membersengageable in a clamped relationship With the opposed upwardlyconverging support arms of the wire hanger cooperating with said lockstud member to provide vertical and lateral support and 'bias the Wirehanger into engagement with said main body.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,151,013 3/1939 Coney 223883,061,154 10/1962 Connall 223-87 JORDAN FRANKLIN, Primary Examiner. G.H. KRIZMANICH, Assistant Examiner.

